The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) issued a warning on Thursday after it received a complaint from a Washington investor about Fameex, now offline. The investor, a real estate agent, met scammer “Jackson Qie” via an unsolicited text. Qie convinced him to invest over $113,000 in ether (ETH) and tether (USDT) on Fameex. When the investor attempted to withdraw funds, Fameex demanded exorbitant fees totaling over $84,000, but the withdrawals never processed. The investor, losing around $200,000, later discovered Qie’s photos were stolen from various sources. DFI urges caution with unsolicited investment offers. While DFI stated that it has not verified these allegations, the regulator noted: “This appears to be what is commonly called a ‘Pig Butchering’ scheme. It may also be an ‘Advance Fee Fraud,’ which can take many forms.”
